The Inuhanyou and the Kitsune Jinchuuriki
by brown phantom
Summary: When a jewel got broken, two worlds got combined. A prophecy was changed and destiny was altered. But in who's favor? NaruHina InuKag, smarter Naruto pre-timeskip. Rated M just to be safe.
1. Prologue

Prologue

'I need to get control over it. I won't let it control me.' Naruto thought as he was trying chakra control exercises, only not with his own chakra. 'I've been able to become everything I am today despite all my obstacles, I will not let something like a stubborn fox stop me now.'

In his last battle he had to fight Kabuto and came close to dying. If it weren't for the kyuubi he would be dead. But Naruto knew the fox hadn't done it to be kind, it was self-interested help. Much like most of the help Naruto had gotten in his life.

'The fox's chakra is the only reason I'm still alive. Despite my training, both official and unofficial, I was overpowered by Orochimaru's henchman. Sure that's my fault, I didn't control my anger as much as I should have. I need to figure out how to use this chakra myself so I stop doing that. So I won't need the fox to save me later on. In case he ever decides to let me die for some reason.'

So there he was, trying the chakra exercises that led to him using the rasengan only with Kyuubi's chakra instead. The problem was each time he tried using a small amount of it, it didn't stay small. It grew and threatened to devour him, but luckily he could stop it by cutting off the source. He was certain that he could change this with practice, but it was easier said than done.

He didn't realize that he was being watched by two people, one a girl his age and the other an older man.

'Naruto-kun, what's that you're using? Why is your chakra red right now?' Hinata asked herself, having seen him use red chakra before in his fight against Neji but still unsure of what it was since normal chakra was blue.

'So he's trying to control it already. I doubt he can but let's see how good he can do at this point. Sensei did say this was his one obstacle to his true potential in the past. Well, that and the people he had to hide from of course.' Jiraiya thought, observing his student's struggle.

Things were going normally, or at least not as bad as feared, but suddenly something unexpected happened. The red chakra started to turn a bright pink, almost like it was glowing.

"What the-?" Naruto asked himself, and cut the flow of chakra to avoid anything unpleasant. However the chakra remained, covering Naruto despite him not channeling it, and the glow got steadily brighter.

"What's going on?!" Naruto all but shouted.

Hinata activated her byakugan. 'That chakra... it looks like it's trying to swallow him.' Panicked by the thought, Hinata ran to him. "Naruto-kun!"

Jiraiya then had the same thought as her and tried to get to the whiskered blonde, but the glow became blinding, like Naruto had just turned into a pink sun. So much so that Jiraiya had to turn away and cover his eyes before he went blind for real. Despite the fact his eyes were closed he saw just white.

After a bit the white faded and he saw the normal black people see when their eyes are closed. 'Is is over? That was fast.' Jiraiya's eyes took a moment to refocus, but once they did he couldn't believe what he saw. "Naruto?"

No response.

"Naruto!" He repeated, louder, hoping this time he'd hear something.

All he heard was an echo.

"Not good. I need to go tell Tsunade right now." He said to himself before running to his former teammate as fast as he possibly could, hoping she would be merciful.

* * *

Naruto and Hinata were also blinded by the light, but Naruto recovered quickly. "What the heck was that?" He checked himself and saw he wasn't glowing anymore.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata called out.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked, recognizing her voice. He turned and saw her wobbling around, hands out in front of her. "What's wrong?"

"I... I can't see. I'm blind." She told him, her voice full of fear.

The blonde immediately went up to her and held her hands to comfort her. "Can you see anything? Any shadows or anything?"

Hinata blinked a few times, her eyes still unfocused. "I... I think I'm starting to get better. I can see a blur now. Naruto-kun, I'm so scared, Hyuugas aren't supposed to be blind." She started shaking like she was cold.

Naruto on impulse put his arms around her to make her calm down. She froze a bit, but relaxed in his embrace. "It's okay, my eyes were hurting too from that light. Maybe your eyes just need a bit longer to readjust. And if not, I can help you see again. You won't stay blind, I promise."

"What happened to you Naruto-kun? You're not hurt are you? Please tell me you're alright." She pleaded, ignoring his unusual claim that he could fix her eyes.

"I'm fine, same as before. But I have no idea what that light was." He said. 'She sounds so concerned for me, wish Sakura-chan could do the same.' He thought as he now took notice of his surroundings. "Umm... Hinata-chan? Don't panic, but we're not where we originally were."

"Huh?" She asked, not understanding him. Looking at him she began to see yellow and orange but he was still blurry.

"All I know is I had been standing in a clearing before with the trees some good distance away from me. Now the trees are close enough I can practically touch them. Also, I could see the Hokage Monument from where I was, and now I can't." He explained.

Hinata glanced around, seeing just a brown blur. "I still can't see clearly. Maybe we should walk around a bit to see if maybe you're right."

"Good idea. Stay close to me." He said, letting go of her but keeping ahold of her hand, making her smile.

'If you ever asked I'd never be anywhere else.'

* * *

"Tsunade!"

"Dammit Jiraiya can't you use the door just once?" Tsunade complained as she turned to see the toad sage at her window. She unlocked it and let him in. "This better be important."

"Naruto vanished."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Come again?"

"I was observing him training in chakra control when all of a sudden his chakra turned pink and began to glow very very brightly. So bright I had to look away. When I could see again, he was gone. Vanished without a trace."

Tsunade was shocked and understandably worried. "Did someone attack him?"

"This didn't look like any attack to me. My first thought was Kyuubi was trying to break free, but if that were the case then why isn't the fox here attacking?"

Tsunade nodded. "Still, this couldn't possibly be nothing. Was Naruto practicing a sort of teleportation jutsu and activated it?" She gasped. "Was it the Hiraishin? That creates a flash of light."

"No way. There's no way Naruto can know the Hiraishin." Jiraiya insisted.

"Couldn't he have maybe learned it the same night he learned the shadow clones?" Tsunade asked, remembering Naruto's tale of how he became a genin and learned a kinjutsu at his age. Which to her was highly suspicious. How could a boy with no help in learning jutsu manage to pick up the shadow clone jutsu in a couple of hours? That would be like writing a book only after you just learned to read. Tsunade suspected Naruto wasn't telling her everything.

"I asked Naruto how much he learned from the scroll and he said shadow clones was all he had time for." Jiraiya assured her.

"But maybe he copied the instructions and has been working on it in secret all this time." Tsunade theorized.

Jiraiya thought it over. "Maybe, but I don't remember ever seeing Minato _glow_ from the jutsu. The flash was a by-product of the jutsu, not something that happened before it was used."

"Nevertheless, Naruto disappearing is not a good thing. Gather up all his friends and have them search the village. They're likely to find him, I hope." Tsunade ordered.

"Uhh... about that. One of his friends was watching Naruto at the same time I was, but not by my design. When he began to glow she jumped out to him ahead of me and she... vanished too." Jiraiya explained, hoping this wouldn't upset her.

It upset her.

"What? We have two genin missing thanks to who-knows-what? Who was the other one?"

"I didn't get a good look, but I'm positive it was a girl." He answered.

"Round up all of Naruto's friends. The one who doesn't show up is bound to be her. Don't tell them what's going on, just tell them to come here ASAP." Tsunade told Jiraiya, who nodded and left the same way he came. Fatigued from this, Tsunade slumped in her chair. "Naruto, wherever you are you better be safe, because I'm going to pound you for something like this."

* * *

"Hinata-chan, don't panic, but we should have reached the village by now, and we haven't."

Hinata nodded. "I thought so. We weren't that far away from something recognizable. We should have seen something by now."

"How are your eyes? Can you see yet?"

"A little. I can make things out but it's blurry, like my eyes can't focus just yet. But I can see you just fine, maybe because you're so close to me right now." She answered, having to squint at everything around her.

All of a sudden Naruto stopped, and Hinata could feel him tense up. "Hinata-chan, stay quiet. I hear something." He whispered. She nodded and stayed still. With them unaware of their exact location it wouldn't be wise to be defenseless.

"Did you find it yet?" An unfamiliar male voice asked, sounding rather impatient.

"Yeah, I found it but I'm still looking around." An unfamiliar female voice responded, quite sarcastically.

On reflex Hinata activated her byakugan. Her eyes stung but she could see as clear as she always could with her doujutsu. "Naruto-kun, there are only two people here." She whispered. "They seem to have normal chakra levels but nothing about them looks like... a... ninja?" She trailed off.

"Something wrong Hinata-chan?"

She nodded. "Naruto-kun, the boy, well, they're both older than us by a few years, but the male of the two... has dog ears."

"Dog ears?" Naruto repeated, louder than a whisper but still generally quiet. "No offense Hinata-chan, but maybe your eyes are still messed up."

She squinted as if that would improve her vision. "No, he's got dog ears, claws, and chakra levels close to high chuunin or low jounin. The girl of the group has high genin chakra at best, and looks normal, but there's something strange about her eyes I've never see before."

"And neither has any hitai-ate or Konoha symbols?" Naruto asked.

"No, nothing like that."

"Then we should be prepared for them to be enemies. Keep your eyes on them Hinata, and I'll see if I can trap them somehow and find out where we are."

* * *

"I get the feeling the jewel is around here somewhere." The girl said calmly.

"It better be." The boy said gruffly, then stopped and sniffed the air. "Something's here."

"What?"

"Not sure, but it reminds me of kitsune and human at the same time. Maybe another hanyou."

"Are kitsune as dangerous as I'm told?" The girl asked.

"Sometimes. They're more annoying than anything else but the multi-tailed ones can do more than just annoy. But they're not as effective if we know they're coming. They're worse when they have the element of surprise, which isn't the case now." He then tensed, looking ready to pounce. "I'm going to get them first. Before they take the jewel from us."

Looking thru the foliage, sniffing the air as he did so, his eyes locked on one direction almost right in front of him. "Got him." He said just before he pounced, disappearing in a flash. He got his claws out to attack without warning, and saw his target, a boy trying to hide. 'Why is he wearing orange?' He asked before he reached his target, hitting him, only for the boy to go up in smoke.

'A kitsune trick.' He looked around. 'Where's the real one?' He tried sniffing but the scent seemed to be coming from all directions. Even downwind.

All of a sudden a lot of orange-wearing boys jumped out all at once, providing the answer to why the scent was all around. On impulse he slashed in a revolving manner, meaning he spun in place with his claws out striking them all almost at once. They all dispelled and created a lot of smoke that blocked his eyes and his nose.

From under his feet the earth trembled and one boy came up quickly with an uppercut punch, striking the dog-eared fellow in the jaw. The attack registered but showed no signs of being effective.

"Is that the best you can do kitsune?"

Naruto frowned deeply. "I am not the fox!" He created one clone and started to work on a rasengan with it.

"Inuyasha?" The girl called out, seeing the boy and was immediately confused by him. 'Is that really a kitsune youkai or hanyou? But why would someone from the Feudal Era dress up like that? That looks more like clothes from my time.'

"Stay back." The now-named Inuyasha told her. "He's trying some strange kind of fox fire."

"Fox fire? That's one I've never heard before, and I've heard just about every insult possible." Naruto commented as the chakra orb got ready. Inuyasha kept his claws ready but he didn't look the least bit afraid.

Before the girl could step in, and she did try to, Hinata appeared byakugan active and stood before her. "You stay out of this."

"Your eyes... are you hurt or something?"

"Who are you and where do you come from?" Hinata asked, ignoring the question. All she wanted was to keep Naruto's opponent from having back-up. 'This girl doesn't have any weapons on her, but she probably doesn't need them.'

"My name is Kagome Higurashi, and I'm not from this place to be honest. I'm from a city named Tokyo. Where are you from? You're not dressed right for this culture."

'To-ki-o? Never heard of a place like that. Could it be a codename for one of the hidden villages so these guys appear more like civilians?' Hinata asked herself, her byakugan telling her behind her Naruto and Inuyasha were about to clash. It was blurred but she could identify them.

"Rasengan!"

"Sankon Tesso!"

The two attacks missed each other but struck the main bodies of the attackers, meaning Naruto took Inuyasha's claws to his chest and Inuyasha took Naruto's rasengan to his own chest at the same time.

Hinata gasped in horrow when she saw Inuyasha's claws come out of Naruto's back. "NARUTO-KUN!" She screamed then turned around to look at him directly.

Naruto's rasengan persisted but had little effect on Inuyasha's haori, but it did push him back thus forcing his claws out. Inuyasha lost his balance and fell down, with Naruto collapsing to his knees trying to stop the bleeding. Hinata immediately came up to him and tried to help him.

"Please be okay Naruto-kun. Don't die on me. You can't die on me!" She said, panicked and fearing the worst. She pulled out some medical wrap she kept in her supply pouch. "Take off your jacket. This will help you." He complied, letting her get started.

Kagome decided to check on her own companion. "Inuyasha? You okay?"

He waved it off. "I'm fine. That attack barely did anything." To Kagome's surprise his haori only had a few rips on it. "This outfit is made from fur of the fire rat. It's as strong as most armor, just more convenient to wear. His fox fire didn't hurt, but it had a surprising amount of force behind it."

Kagome gasped. "Inuyasha..." She suddenly paused.

"Yeah?" He asked, wondering what she was concerned about now.

"Inuyasha, what if they're not demons? I mean, you've never seen anyone or anything dressed like that before have you?" Kagome asked.

"I've never seen anyone or anything dressed like you before. What's your point?" He stated.

"I think these two aren't from around here. They're dressed more like my time, though not exactly. Maybe they've traveled through time like me." Kagome suggested.

"But how could he use something like that if he's not a youkai?" Inuyasha asked.

"I don't know, but we should ask before we kill them."

Naruto had to lay down as Hinata finished wrapping him up. She no longer had her byakugan active but her eyesight was back to normal without it, the temporary blindness having worn off. She even used some of her personal balm to soothe the pain. "How are you Naruto-kun?"

He smiled despite his difficulty breathing; it hurt but wasn't impossible. "I'll be fine. Thanks Hinata-chan, you should be a medic ninja someday."

Hinata blushed from the praise. "Thanks, but I don't think anyone would let me."

"There were people back home who if they had their way wouldn't let me be many of things I am, but I didn't let them stop me." He pointed out.

"Excuse me." Kagome gently called out to them both. "Who exactly are you two?"

Hinata frowned and stood protectively over Naruto. "Why should we tell you two? You just tried to kill my best friend."

"You attacked us first." Inuyasha pointed out.

"We're lost, trying to figure out where we are. We were trying to see who you are or what country you're affiliated with without being noticed. You ambushed Naruto-kun and he responded justly. Why should we be courteous to you?"

Kagome held up her hands. "How about we all agree to a ceasefire and settle the confusion before-" She stopped, feeling a strange new sensation coming at her from above. "What the...?" She looked up, with Hinata looking up at the same time, and saw the head of the crow demon she had shot and destroyed earlier coming at her, making her scream for a second.

Reacting on instinct Inuyasha leapt and slashed at the disembodied head, rending it to mulch. The only thing that remained was a tiny shiny thing that fell into the grass. "What was that?"

Curious as well, Kagome bent down and picked it up. Whatever it was, it was pink and definitely a mineral, and it gave her the same sensation she had felt earlier, especially when she had the jewel on her person earlier that day. 'Oh no, could this be...?' She asked herself, her face now reflecting her worry.

"What is it?" Inuyasha repeated.

Kagome got up and faced him, holding up the fragment. "I... I think this is a... piece of the shikon jewel."

Inuyasha was aghast. "Wha... what did you say?"

"I think I broke the jewel." Kagome said apologetically.

Inuyasha was too shocked to react.

Kagome just held the shard in her hand since she didn't have any pockets on her outfit, then she looked at the two younger people. "Are you two after the jewel?"

"What jewel?" Naruto and Hinata said together.

"You don't know about it?" Kagome added.

"We're not interested in some crystal. We just want to know where we are." Naruto insisted.

"You're right outside a small farming village somewhere in Musashi's domain. I'm not certain of the specific year but this is called the Feudal Era where I come from, which is Tokyo, Japan, in the year 1997." Kagome told them.

Both genin looked confused. "I did not understand one bit of that." Naruto claimed.

"Me neither." Hinata said.

"You two are not youkai right? And the girl isn't really blind?" Kagome asked as she sat down. Inuyasha got out of his shock but stayed standing beside her in case these two did something.

Naruto frowned. "I'm not a demon. I've been telling people that for years and if you're too stupid or arrogant to listen then do me a favor and leave me alone."

"I meant no offense, I'm just not certain what to think. Inuyasha said you smell like a fox but you dress like my era in a way so I wasn't sure what you are. Can you tell me your name please?"

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, and no I'm not a fox."

"I'm Hinata Hyuuga, and no I'm not blind."

"Where are you from?" Kagome asked.

"We'd rather not say until we know you're not an enemy." Naruto claimed.

"Actually Naruto-kun, if they were enemy shinobi they could have kept attacking now, not trying to chat with us like this." Hinata told him.

"Shinobi? Oh, I'm no ninja. I don't even know how to fight. Is that what you two are?" Kagome asked.

"You two look nothing like ninja." Inuyasha stated.

"Well what are you?" Naruto asked.

"I'm just an ordinary girl far from home, and he's an inuhanyou." Kagome answered for Inuyasha.

"Inuhanyou?" Naruto and Hinata repeated, looking at the dog-eared boy. "Half human, half dog demon?"

"What's it to you?" Inuyasha asked gruffly, like they were insinuating something he didn't care for.

"Something tells me getting things settled between us is going to take a while." Kagome said to herself quietly.

* * *

"Is this absolutely everyone?" Tsunade asked the group in front of her.

"Everyone except Hinata and Naruto." Shino answered.

"Well that answers one question." Tsunade commented before standing before the group of genin. "Everyone, something strange has happened today. According to eyewitness Jiraiya, Naruto was out training by himself today and became engulfed in a strange light. When the light faded, he was simply gone."

She paused for a moment to see their reactions, glad to see shock instead of 'good riddance' or 'who cares'.

"We are not sure yet of the cause of this event, or intention behind it if any, and we likely won't until we learn where exactly Naruto is. I need all ten of you to search this village as best you can without letting anyone know who exactly you're looking for. Repeat, don't let anyone under any circumstances become aware that you're looking for a missing Naruto."

"Why?" Sakura asked.

'Can't tell them the real reason, that some citizens would overreact and possibly reveal more than needs to be learned or his enemies will try to beat them to finding him and silence him in this golden opportunity.' Tsunade advised herself. "Because I said so. We need to assume that this wasn't an accident. If we're lucky Naruto just goofed on a shunshin and is somewhere in the village, but if not we need to rule out the possibility. Then we can begin searching outside Konoha in case this is an abduction."

"What about Hinata? Why isn't she being told this?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, if anybody can find the knucklehead it's his personal stalker." Ino added.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Because the eyewitness said just before Naruto disappeared, one of his friends was there and tried to save him, only to vanish with him. Hinata's absence confirms that she was that someone, meaning she is missing too. And thus another reason why you must remain silent on this matter, since the Hyuuga will not be happy about her being unaccounted for."

"Hinata-sama's gone too?" Neji asked.

"Did I stutter? Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuuga are currently unlocated, and I need you ten to go out and find them before someone else does. Now get out there and don't stop until you either find them or hear a recall order from me."

"Yes Hokage-sama." The Rookies said before departing.

Tsunade looked outside her office, looking over the village. "Naruto, where are you?"

* * *

Far away, an old toad opened his eyes. "Something strange just happened."

"Excuse me Prophet-sama?" One of the smaller ones asked, caught off guard by the prophesying toad halting his meditation.

"Something is about to happen, something that will tie two worlds together, but I'm not sure how." The giant toad said before closing his eyes again. "It's clouded right now. I will require some time to get a proper glimpse."

The smaller toad left the room to avoid distracting the prophet toad, who was trying his best to see what to be on alert for.

* * *

A young man was sitting in a castle room enjoying his dinner when he felt a strange sensation in the air.

"What was that?"

"Did you say something Kagewaki-sama?" One of the guards posted outside asked.

"Nothing important, just thought I saw something for a moment." He lied calmly then looked back outside. 'I grow tired of this masquerade as Kagewaki Hitomi. I should prepare myself for another transformation and find a new role to set myself into, then check out what that was I felt. But first, it might be wise to let these foolish humans begin an inspection for me. Or maybe one of my puppets.'

With that he pulled out a hair and wrapped it around a wooden doll. 'When they go to sleep my double will go out and see if anything significant has occurred.'

* * *

In another far-off place a masked man felt the same thing but couldn't identify it.

'Hmm... I get the feeling something happened that could pose a real hindrance to me later on.'

"Tobi, what are you doing now?" Deidara asked.

"Nothing, Tobi wasn't doing anything." The masked man insisted, remembering where he was.

"Then get back to work."

* * *

An old man having a drink suddenly stopped, resulting in him nearly choking. "Could it be? Has Inuyasha-sama been awakened? I must go see for myself."

"What did you say Myouga?" Another old man said as he hammered away on a weapon freshly pulled out of a forge fire.

"I need to be off for a bit Totosai. I think an old acquaintance of mine is back."

"Want a ride?"

Myouga shook his head. "No thanks, this I should see on my own. And since he doesn't have the Master's fang yet there's little reason for you to waste your time on it."

"Then safe journey old friend."


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Night was coming and the two pairs decided to not keep fighting outside as it got colder. Mainly Kagome, since her clothes were the least suited for the cold compared to Inuyasha's or the genin. The only place any of them could go was back to Kaede's hut, and the old woman was as curious about the two newcomers as Inuyasha and Kagome were.

"Where do ye two come from?" Kaede asked, hoping the 'grandmotherly' charm she had would settle them and get them to open up.

"Why don't you tell us where we are, then we can tell you where we're from?" Naruto asked. Because they didn't seem to recognize the Konoha insignia, he could only assume this place had little experience with ninja at all.

"Does this village even have a name?" Kagome asked.

Kaede shook her head. "We see no need to name this village. It's not significant enough to require one."

"What country is this then?" Hinata asked.

"This region is Musashi." Kaede answered.

"Musashi?" Naruto and Hinata repeated, completely unfamiliar with the region.

"What town do you two come from?" Kagome asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Naruto replied, thumbing his hitai-ate.

"What the hell does that mean?" Inuyasha asked.

"I think I know what happened here." Kagome said, getting everyone to listen. "You see, I'm not actually from this world. Well, I am but not this time. I'm from the future of this world. I think you two have traveled thru time like I have, but you come from a different year than I did. Maybe you're from my time's future."

"Time travel?" Naruto repeated, doubtful. "How could we have traveled thru time?"

"How should I know? I still don't understand how I did it. One moment I'm standing by a well, then a half-dead centipede demon pops out and drags me in. When I get away from her, I'm here in this village in the past. What was the last thing that happened to you two?"

"I was practicing some chakra control exercises but I suddenly started to glow a bright pink. Next thing I know I'm here with Hinata."

"Chakra?" Inuyasha repeated.

"Bright pink?" Kagome did too, then looked to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, you don't think-"

"That the jewel is involved? It's possible." He cut her off. "I mean, who knows what really happened when it shattered. It's a very powerful item. It wouldn't just break, and since it did it could have had some kind of reaction."

"What jewel are you two talking about?" Hinata asked.

"A pink quartz-like marble called the Shikon no Tama. Very dangerous in the wrong hands. Makes demons a lot more powerful, and can even corrupt humans who aren't careful with it." Inuyasha answered. "But this wench ended up breaking it."

Kagome looked irritated. "Don't say it like I did it on purpose. And I told you my name is Kagome, not wench." He huffed, and Kagome looked back at the two ninja. "If I remember correctly, your names are Hinata and Naruto, am I right?" They nodded. "Unless you have a better explanation, I think time travel is the only thing that makes sense. What year is it where you come from?"

"November 2015." Naruto and Hinata answered. _(Since there's no possible way to determine any sort of year date in the series, and the anime started in 2002, I decided to make it so the Kyuubi attack happened in their 2002 and therefore Naruto would be genin in 2015 their time.)_

Kagome blinked. "I come from April 1997, and this year if I had to guess is probably close to 1497."

"But how could we have traveled thru time?" Naruto asked.

Kagome shrugged. "How should I know? I'm still not entirely sure how I did it. But I do know that the Shikon Jewel was involved for me. Maybe somehow it was involved for you two as well."

'I was using Kyuubi's chakra when it happened. Does the fox have some connection to this jewel?' Naruto asked himself. "Anyway, the real question is what do we do while we're here and unable to go back."

"I'm getting the jewel shards back and becoming a real demon." Inuyasha answered plainly.

"Why would you want that?" Hinata asked.

Inuyasha looked away. "That's my business, not yours."

"How do you plan on finding the shards?" Naruto asked.

Inuyasha looked at Kagome. "You're helping me right? I mean, it is your fault the jewel broke in the first place."

"You don't have to remind me, I'm well aware. And why should I help you if you want to become a demon? What's in it for me?"

"Kagome, with the jewel shattered and the pieces scattered abound, numerous demons can now have a portion of its power." Kaede explained. "Most of those demons and evil-hearted men will not be satisfied with just one piece of the jewel. They will fight all other keepers of shards and collect them until one of them has all the shards back together. It is possible that some might even figure out how to restore the jewel to its original whole state again."

"Yeah, I'm not the only one interested in the jewel wench. Mistress Centipede should have been your first clue to that." Inuyasha told Kagome.

Kaede briefly narrowed her good eye. "Inuyasha may not be the best one to have the jewel, but he is far from the worst. As my elder sister's reincarnation-"

"We don't know that's even true." Kagome interjected.

"Until I have good reason to believe that we should continue believing ye are. As Kikyo-onee-sama's reincarnation you have an inherited responsibility to ensure the jewel stays out of the hands of evil souls. But you are obviously unable to retrieve the shards on your own, and we have no time to correct that. Ye must partner with Inuyasha at least long enough to retrieve them before the jewel is completed in the hands of someone who will only corrupt it."

Kagome took this in and sighed before nodding. "You're right. It's my fault and I can't pretend I'm not involved. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and find a way home if I can."

Inuyasha looked at the genin. "And what are you two going to do?"

Naruto and Hinata looked at each other. "Naruto-kun, do you think we should help?"

The whiskered blonde shrugged. "I'm not sure. I know we're just as clueless how to go home ourselves. But maybe this jewel is part of why we showed up. So maybe we need it to go home."

"No one's using the jewel but me." Inuyasha insisted.

"Who says only one person can use it?" Naruto replied. "If the jewel could only give one person power and that's it, wouldn't it have been used up already? How long has it been around?"

Inuyasha blanched. "Actually, I never thought about it." He turned to Kaede expectantly.

The old miko shrugged. "Alas I do not know myself. My sister was the one properly informed on the jewel, not I. But I believe it has been around for quite some time."

"So if it's been around for awhile that means it's probably been used many times, and maybe even granted many wishes. Why would only one person get a wish Inuyasha?" Naruto asked.

"Fine, you kids can use it after I'm done." The hanyou replied.

Kagome held up the one shard she had, looking at it. "The search may take a while."

"Where else are we going to go?" Naruto asked rhetorically.

"Good point. So what do we do first?"

"Isn't it obvious? We go find the shards one by one." Inuyasha stated.

"Umm, Inuyasha-san?" Hinata started. "I don't think searching random places right away is a good idea. I mean, Kagome-san looks to me like she's not used to excessive travel and living off the land. Naruto-kun and I are, but she should be taught a few things first. Also, I don't think she knows how to properly defend herself from major threats."

"I can try, but I do need practice." Kagome said.

"You have any idea how long that will take?" Inuyasha said, not liking the idea. "We don't have time."

"It seems to me time is the only thing we do have." Naruto countered. "Besides, wouldn't you feel better traveling with a companion who can do more than just look for something? I mean, Hinata-chan's eyes are really useful but that's not her only skill. She's a great fighter, knows how to treat wounds, good at noticing changes in the weather, and is all-around terrific company."

"Na... Naruto-kun?" Hinata said, blushing from his praise. "You really think so?"

"Have I ever lied to you Hinata-chan?"

The Hyuuga heiress smiled but didn't answer. 'Naruto-kun, thank you. If I had to be lost and sent through time like this, I'm glad it's with you.'

Kagome smiled at this interaction. 'Looks like the girl's got quite the crush on the boy, though I wonder if the boy feels the same way or even knows it. Probably not, but I can't say for sure just yet.'

Inuyasha sighed. "Alright, maybe we can take a day or two to get her somewhat prepared. But you two are helping."

"Did we say we wouldn't?" Naruto asked rhetorically.

* * *

"You found no sign of them?"

Neji shook his head. "Yes Hokage-sama. We have checked everywhere in Konoha twice. We even checked the places we believe Naruto and Hinata-sama wouldn't go even if they had been paid to. Suffice to say that the two of them are either hiding extraordinarily well or they are simply not here anymore."

The other Rookies nodded in agreement.

Tsunade closed her eyes and withheld a sigh. 'I get the feeling Naruto isn't just hiding. That just leaves the option of him not being here anymore. The question then is where did he and that girl go? And how? And most important of all, how do we get them back?'

"Shouldn't the Anbu look for them now Hokage-sama?" Sakura asked, concerned for her teammate. Annoying as he may have been, Naruto was still her teammate and friend.

Tsunade shook her head. "No, that would be pointless. I sent you all out because you all are more familiar with the missing persons in question and therefore more likely to recognize signs of them Anbu might overlook. If you guys can't find any sign of them, I see little reason to waste Anbu time trying to find the same. It would be more beneficial to have them start searching outside Konoha."

"So what do we do now?" Ino asked.

"Go back to your normal business but keep an eye out. At this point there's nothing else you _can_ do."

"What do I tell my clan?" Neji asked.

"Leave that to me. Tell Hiashi I need to speak to him here right away. Other than that you're all dismissed."

* * *

"So this is how you came here?" Naruto asked Kagome while he, Hinata, and her were by the Bone-Eater's Well.

"Yep. I was just standing beside it minding my own business with a centipede demon popped out and pulled me in. I got loose and next thing I knew I was here." Kagome answered. "Those bones at the bottom, I think those are the bones of the centipede, dumped down there by the villagers after Inuyasha killed her."

"What would happen if you jumped back down? You think you'd go back to your time?" Hinata asked.

"Oh no, that's not happening." Inuyasha objected.

Kagome frowned. "I have a family you know. I'm entitled to go see them if I want."

"But you're needed here." Inuyasha said, a bit bothered by her mentioning she had a family. He almost felt like she was rubbing it in.

"Inuyasha, she's not saying she's going away for good. She just wants to let her family know what's going on. Is that wrong?" Hinata asked.

Instead of answering her, Inuyasha looked at the older girl present. "You swear you'll come back?"

"Yes yes, I know I need to. But I'll come back when I'm ready." She said before carefully jumping down the well. Everyone looked down and saw the bottom glow for a moment then Kagome sank into the dirt as if it were water before she disappeared completely.

"She better not take too long, or I'm going after her." Inuyasha complained.

"Can you?" Naruto tested.

Inuyasha looked ready to find out, but Hinata grabbed his arm. "Give her a moment to get out of the well on her end, then try it out. If by some chance you can get thru, this way you won't crash into her and hurt her."

Hesitant, the hanyou waited.

* * *

Even without needing to look around, Kagome knew where she was. At the bottom of the well she had experienced the same thing she had last time, a rift in time. Looking up, she was a wooden roof instead of open sky.

'I'm home. At least, I hope I am. I'd hate to think this is some other year.' Kagome thought, then realized one crucial error. "Wait, how am I going to get out of here?" There was no ladder or anything to grab ahold of.

A moment later the bottom of the well glowed again but Kagome wasn't moving thru a time rift. Instead, she saw a red-cloaked figure appeared. "I-Inuyasha?"

"Keh, looks like the kids were right." He said with a smug smirk. "Is this your home?"

"Once I get out I'll know for sure." She said. "Can you help? I can't exactly climb these walls."

Inuyasha wrapped an arm around her waist and with a hefty jump got them both out. "Why is there a building around the well?"

"It's a shrine built around the well, to preserve it I think." Kagome answered. Carefully she opened the door, hoping the world outside was recognizable. Before it opened entirely, she paused. "Wait, are Naruto and Hinata coming thru?"

"I didn't ask."

* * *

Rather than go thru the well, Naruto and Hinata sat down by a tree and waited.

"Naruto-kun, I'm scared." Hinata admitted, hoping this wouldn't make him think less of her.

Naruto soothed her by putting an arm around her. "Me too. Like someone once said, we'd have to be crazy not to be scared."

Hinata felt better knowing she wasn't the only one. "How do we get home? _Can_ we even get home?"

"Something brought us here, it stands to reason that something can bring us back." Naruto thought out loud. "I'm just not sure what though. I think all we can do is go along with the situation we're in and try to come up with something."

"Do you think that jewel they talked about can take us home?" Hinata inquired.

"It's possible, but I'd like to know about this jewel. So far all we know is it supposedly can grant wishes but from what we've heard it's only been used to make demons stronger. I'd like to know more about it before we put all our eggs in that basket."

Hinata nodded. "That makes sense. Also, should we try the well? Maybe it can take us to our world and time?"

Naruto shrugged. "I'm not sure. I'd rather wait until Inuyasha returns, but even then what if it will only take us to Kagome's world and time?"

Hinata sighed sadly. "It sounds like no matter what, we're stuck here."

Naruto tightened his hold on her. "Don't worry Hinata-chan, I'll keep you safe."

The pale-eyed girl softly smiled and leaned against him. "Thank you Naruto-kun." 'Even though we're wherever we are, there's no one I'd rather be lost with.'

* * *

"Oh my oh me, finally after all these years the Shikon Jewel is back in the world." A woman thought out loud as she sat in her lair, combing some hair. Only it wasn't her hair, but some on a human skull. "And soon, it will be all mine." She added with a giggle that grew into full blown laughter.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Hard to believe there actually was a time before public baths." Naruto said while he and Hinata were standing beside a lake.

"Well hot water wasn't always so common in the past Naruto-kun." Hinata told him, using her hand to test the temperature of the water. "Brr. It's cold, but not freezing."

"Oh I know that. I just figured people used to heat it before using it, not take baths in lakes instead. Not that I can't handle it, I've bathed in cold water many times. I just don't like it, and I figured you'd like it even less."

"Why's that?" She asked. 'Does he think of me as some spoiled heiress who can't fathom bathing in anything even a bit below warm?' She worried, hoping Naruto didn't think of her as some stereotype.

"The main reason is your jacket."

Hinata blinked. "W-what?" She certainly hadn't expected that as an answer.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, you're always wearing your jacket. I think I've seen you without it maybe twice, three times in as many years. I figure it's either your choice of a fashion statement, or maybe you just get cold easily."

Feeling better, Hinata lightly shook her head. "No, it's more... mostly because I feel comfortable in it."

"Like me and my outfit?" Naruto replied and got a nod for an answer. "Alright, well, I'll give you your privacy."

"Wait, you're leaving?" Hinata asked.

"You didn't expect me to bathe with you right?"

At the moment Hinata was experiencing a bit of a moral quandary. While she was too nervous to actually bathe with him, she was at least comforted by the knowledge he would be around. Not because she wanted him to see her, she certainly wouldn't object if he wanted to, but this was a strange place they were in and apparently full of threats they weren't familiar with. Hinata wasn't sure how far away she wanted Naruto to be while she was bathing.

"Naruto-kun, can you at least remain where we can talk and hear each other?" She asked, blushing a lot. "I'd feel a lot better knowing you were close by. Demons are a lot more common here than back home after all."

"You sure? In my experience when a girl's bathing she considers any distance between her and a boy is too close." He said.

Hinata nodded. "Yes, I'd feel safer knowing I can at least hear your voice if you say something. Besides, I'm not Sakura so I'm not going to hit you."

"Thanks." He said with a friendly grin. "Well, if you insist." He then went to sit against a tree, ensuring he wasn't looking at her.

"Hey Naruto-kun?" Hinata called out.

He looked around the tree. "Yeah?"

"Just so I don't wonder, if... if I h-had o-off-offered for us to... to b-bathe to-together, w-would you have a-accepted?" She asked, her stutter on high because of her nervousness.

It took him a moment to decipher her question because of the stutter, and it made him turn red too, but not as red as she was. "Umm... probably not but only because I'd feel obligated to say no."

Hinata lightly smiled. 'That means he'd want to say yes but he'd be respectful and decline.' "Thanks Naruto-kun." Without another word she turned around and took off her jacket, prompting Naruto to look away. Certain she had privacy, Hinata stripped bare then waded into the lake.

"Whoa, this is colder than I expected." She said while shivering. "I'm not going to be in here long then." She commented before taking a breath and ducking under the surface.

* * *

Back in the village Kaede was requested to see to one of the village women, who had mysteriously collapsed earlier and was now inside a hut resting.

"She was just fine this morning. I don't understand." The mother of the afflicted woman told the elderly miko.

"I'll see to it." Kaede reassured, stepping towards the girl in question. Right away she sensed something was 'off' but she couldn't place it. To her surprise the girl immediately sat up, arms stretched out, but overall looking like she was sleepwalking more than anything. "Move away." She advised the others in the hut.

This warning became more justified when the girl began to hover in the air like a puppet being held up by strings.

"She's floating?" The mother said, scared by the unexpected sight.

'No, she's being held. By... hair?' Kaede thought, seeing something she couldn't see before in the shadows. Strands of hair were wrapped around the girl's arms and torso, acting exactly like puppet strings. Where it was coming from and how it was doing this, Kaede had no idea, but she was certain a youkai was involved.

Things got worse when another strand of hair wrapped around a cleaver and brought the weapon to the girl's hand. She grasped it and raised her arm as if ready to chop something. Unfortunately, the only things to chop were Kaede and the others.

Needless to say they ran out of there, but the sound of metal hitting flesh and blood spurting was heard.

* * *

Having enough, Hinata climbed out of the lake and sat on a rock. She combed her hair with her fingers to get excess water out while looking around for the towel she left by her clothes. Although 'towel' was used loosely here, as opposed to the type of towels she was used to back home this one was just a plain strip of fabric.

'Better than nothing.' She told herself before using it to wipe herself dry. The fabric got wet really quickly and after a while it felt like she wasn't getting any drier anymore. Irritated, she wrung the towel to dry it out then started again, this time getting a better result. 'This will take some getting used too. I just hope I can convince Kagome-san to bring real towels here from her time if she can.'

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto called out.

"I'm almost done Naruto-kun. Give me a moment to get dressed." She replied without looking his way.

"Hinata-chan run!" He said with a bit of panic in his voice as opposed to just a warning.

The Hyuuga heiress looked his way and saw he was flying towards her with his fist out as if to strike her, though his face showed a complete expression of confusion and desire not to do this. With an eep Hinata jumped back and avoided his hit.

"Naruto-kun?"

"Hinata-chan, something's controlling my body. I can't stop myself." He said, sounding as unnerved as she looked.

Relieved he wasn't deliberately attacking her, not that she suspected that even for a second, Hinata was now concerned about what was controlling him like this. Not knowing what else to do, she activated her byakugan. 'What? He's got... very long strands of hair wrapped around his arms and legs? Like puppet strings maybe?'

Naruto turned and was forced to strike again. Hinata dodged around him and used a juuken strike on the hair on his right arm. She cut it and his arm went limp.

"That's great Hinata-chan, now do whatever you did again for the rest of me." Naruto told her, unable to see the hair around himself. But he could see the fact that Hinata was stark naked at the moment and didn't seem to realize it. He blushed a deep red but other than that chose not to call attention to it. If he did, Hinata would faint and be left a sitting duck for his involuntary attacks.

Hinata waited for him to come back towards her, and for a brief moment in her byakugan she saw where the hair was coming from. It led off to a woman with short black hair held by a ribbon, wearing a semi-skimpy black outfit, weaving hair between her fingers as if she was playing cats cradle with it, all while the hair held a connection to Naruto.

Naruto came at her and again she maneuvered away from him, but this time he turned just as quickly, showing the puppeteer was a quick learner. Hinata ducked down and used her juuken to cut the ones on his legs, hoping this would at least slow him down.

His feet now free of control, Naruto was just hanging from the air by his left arm. "Ow! It feels like my arm's going to be pulled off!" He yelled painfully. The hair holding him raised up while tightening, as if trying for such a result.

"Naruto-kun I can't reach it. Cut the hair." Hinata shouted, at least by her standards of volume.

"What hair are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

'He can't see it?' Hinata realized. 'No time, I got to get to him somehow.' Thinking quickly she ran up the tree closest to him and jumped once she got high enough. With a well-aimed strike she managed to cut the last hair and free the whiskered blonde, who fell to the ground with a hard thud, with Hinata landing on top of him.

"Thanks Hinata-chan, sorry about all that." He said while withholding a wince.

"It wasn't your fault. Someone was controlling you, sort of like that puppet guy from Suna." Hinata reassured, referencing Kankuro since this reminded her greatly of his tactics.

"Umm... Hinata-chan? Now that that's over you probably should get dressed now." He added sheepishly.

Confused, Hinata looked at herself then realized that all this time she had failed to put her clothes back on. 'Naruto-kun saw me completely naked?' Her face invented a new shade of red and she promptly passed out, still on top of him.

"I just hope that helps her shyness a little." He said to himself.

Off in the distance he heard a shout, forcing Naruto to look away from the nude girl on his lap. "I better go see what's wrong." He created some clones to do the job itself, not wanting to leave Hinata by herself nor leave her in the care of a clone.

The clones left and he looked at her clothes. "Should I put them back on for her?"

* * *

Away from the area the woman controlling the hair felt some of it go lax but not all.

"Hmmph. One of my prisoners got free. How so?" She withdrew the hair in hopes it would offer a clue. Instead, it brought her some blonde hair. "Oh my oh me, I've never seen hair this color before. It's clearly from a man, not an animal. I simply _must_ have more. But first..."

She began to weave a new pattern with the hair still attached to other people, hoping to cause more calamity while she had the capability for it.

* * *

In the village Naruto's clones saw people hanging from the air like the original had been, only these ones looked unconscious instead. Some people were hiding, or on the ground hurt. One of those people was Kaede, bleeding from a cut that was staining her white haori.

"What's going on?" The clones asked Kaede while checking on how bad the injury was. So far it just looked painful but not threatening.

Kaede was slow to respond, but only because this was her first time seeing a shadow clone. "How...? No, it's not important. Something is controlling these people. Ye must release them from their binds."

"Shouldn't be that hard." One clone said while pulling out a kunai. "Just attack the general area Hinata-chan said the hair is."

With that all the clones tried to free the prisoners, but they couldn't see the hair and kept missing. A few strands were cut, but most were still intact.

'He can't see the hair?' Kaede asked herself, noting the clone's haphazard methods. 'He knows it's there but he cannot see it. So he's instead cutting the general area it should be in. Acceptable, but not fast enough to be effective here.'

"This is too slow. We need Hinata-chan for this." One of the clones shouted to the others.

"I'll go get her." One of the clones said before stabbing himself and dispersing, greatly confusing Kaede.

"What are ye doing?" Kaede asked the remaining clones.

"Buying time now." One of them responded.

* * *

The original Naruto got the memory of his deceased clone, something he learned long ago was possible and was frankly surprised no one had bothered to point out to him before. "Well that answers one question." He looked at Hinata, who he at least covered with her jacket by now, and began to lightly shake her awake. "Hinata-chan, wake up. People are in danger."

Fortunately Hinata never stayed passed out for long. "Huh? What is it?"

"Whatever attacked me is attacking the village. I can't see what's controlling them but you can, so we need to get there quickly. And you might want to put the rest of your clothes on first." He informed her.

Hinata was at first confused, but then suddenly remembered her unintentional display and turned red again.

Seeing that color change and knowing for once that this was just a blush, Naruto acted quickly. "Hinata-chan, don't faint right now. We're needed now and fainting will only slow us down. Get dressed, help me, and _then_ you can hit me for seeing you."

The severity of the impeding situation was all that made Hinata stay conscious enough to dress herself, during which Naruto looked away and kept his eyes closed for. "Remember what I said Naruto-kun, I am not Sakura. Don't expect me to do something simply because you'd expect her to do it in my place."

"No but you are a woman and no unmarried woman ever wants a man to look at her naked." Naruto insisted.

'That depends on who the man is.' The shy girl added in her mind, feeling saying it now would do no good.

Without another word the two went to the village, seeing Naruto's clones keeping the controlled villagers from hurting anyone else or themselves any further.

"Byakugan." Hinata activated her doujutsu and right away saw the hair that was turning these people into puppets, but more importantly she saw where the hair was coming from. All of the hair went into the forest hidden in the trees and condensed into fewer strands, or at least many strands compressed tightly together to make it look like one thick hair instead. And those hairs led back to that mystery woman in the trees near the edge of her range of vision.

"Naruto-kun, follow me but leave the clones here. I've got an idea." Hinata said. He nodded and followed her, heading to the opposite side of the village. She came to a stop by some trees. "The hair controlling them comes from here. If we cut it here, that would save us time compared to cutting all the women free one at a time."

Naruto nodded and took out a kunai. "Where is it?"

Hinata grabbed a handful of dirt and threw it on the hair. Fortunately some stuck and gave Naruto a visual reference point, which he gladly slashed at. Using one of her own kunai Hinata cut at the hair too, and with two slashes each all the hair had been cut and the trapped villagers collapsed on the ground, none hurt but all sore from the landing.

"Who's doing this?" Naruto asked.

"Some woman in the trees, and she knows the hair's cut now." Hinata answered, seeing the black-haired woman frowning and muttering to herself about the sudden slack in her weapon. "Her chakra isn't normal, it's like she's not human."

"You mean a youkai?" Naruto asked.

"Whatever she is, she's coming this way now. We should divert her somehow. Any ideas?" Hinata replied.

Naruto smirked. "If you mean like we prank her, just leave that to me."

* * *

"Drat, the hair's no longer taut. Someone cut it." The hair-weaver complained. "Looks like I'll have to get the Shikon Jewel and this appealing yellow hair directly."

* * *

"Kagome? Where have you been?" Kagome's mother asked when she saw her missing child in the yard of her house. She was so grateful to have her daughter back she completely missed the man standing beside her as she engulfed her in a hug.

Kagome hugged her mother back. "Mama, I've got the craziest story to tell you all. I'm still not sure I believe it myself." She looked over and saw Inuyasha was right there with her as expected, checking out the strange new surroundings and scents. "But if it's not true then I'd really like to wake up now."

Mama finally noticed the newcomer, and her eyes first went to his unusual red ensemble then his silver hair then his dog ears. "Who's this?" She asked, releasing her daughter before going up to Inuyasha and grabbing his ears gently. "Are these real?" Inuyasha did not look at all comfortable with what she was doing.

"Mama stop that. Now's not the time for it, though I do understand why you're doing it. I did it too when I saw them." Kagome admitted.

Having her fill, Mama released the hanyou. "Why don't you both come inside? I have many questions and we might as well be comfortable while we talk."

Inuyasha looked confused. "Wait, you're actually inviting me into your house?"

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" Mama asked. "You look tough, but obviously you're not dangerous otherwise Kagome would be trying to get away from you. And here she is with you. So come on in and tell us what's going on."

Confused, Inuyasha made no effort to oblige her request until Kagome grabbed his sleeve and made an effort to pull him. After that, he simply shrugged and followed, not looking forward to the conversation to come.


End file.
